SAFE ROUTE TO UTAH: PARTICIPATING K-8 CAN WIN $3,000,00 IN PRIZES :WALK MORE IN FOUR APRIL 8TH TO MAY 3RD.

 Does your student love to walk or ride their bike to and from school? There is still time to enter them in the Walk More in Four Spring Challenge, where they can win sweet prizes for walking or biking to school. Visit SafeRoutes.utah.gov/WalkMore to learn more.  Parents, did you know that children who walk to school have been found to be more alert in the classroom? Continue walking or biking with your children to school for the Walk More in Four Spring Challenge and make sure you update their progress chart. SafeRoutes.utah.gov/WalkMore 

TRANSPORTATION

Californians won’t willingly give up their cars: Bet on it

Since the early 1970s time of ex-Gov. Jerry Brown’s first term in office, California officials from the top down have tried to coax Californians out of their cars.

It began with Brown’s installing as his highway czarina the highly touted “transportation genius” Adriana Gianturco, a Harvard graduate school product whose first step was to turn two existing lanes of the world’s busiest roadway — the Santa Monica (10) Freeway in Los Angeles — over to car pools only.

This won her the determined enmity of most local motorists, who soon hounded Gianturco from office and away from California, while the lanes went back to general use and the “Giant Turkey” became a cautionary tale for bureaucrats who followed.

This 44-year-old lesson appears all but forgotten today as state and local governments obsess over the notion that mass transit and dense development can somehow lessen traffic gridlock.

That’s one rationale behind all the bicycle lanes appearing in cities large and small today, often at the expense of traffic lanes and parking spaces. It’s also the reasoning that drives efforts to force dense housing near light-rail stations and heavily used bus routes, on the presumption that new occupants will not add to traffic, using mass transit instead.

The problem: Among California cities, only San Francisco has anything like the comprehensive public transportation system needed to accomplish this. As a result, gridlock is now worse than ever in most cities, including San Francisco, where one recent study showed ride-sharing vehicles from outfits like Uber and Lyft make up 30% of all traffic.

Which means some residents have indeed been driven from their cars — right into other cars. There is no reduction in smog from this; in fact, narrowed streets produce more greenhouse gases than before as cars idle far longer at stoplights because of slower traffic flow caused by transformed traffic lanes. The current profusion of sport utility vehicles doesn’t help, either, as they take up significantly more space than sedans and slow things even more.

Even the presence of new rail lines doesn’t guarantee more mass transit riders. Last year, the Metropolitan Transit Authority of Southern California found opening the new Expo Line from downtown Los Angeles to the beach increased train ridership — but bus occupancy on parallel routes was down by similar amounts. A net of virtually no cars were taken off the road by this huge investment, leaving the 10 Freeway as congested as ever. But the anti-automobilecampaign persists. In San Diego, city officialsvoted to eliminate parking requirements in new construction, even large apartment and condominium projects. Their theory is thatresidents will use buses, ride sharing and bicycles if they don’t have their own parking spaces. This ignores the reality that

in cities with parking shortages, a lucrative rental market already exists for what spaces there are.

Meanwhile, state government, spurred by the same unproven theories, pushes cities to dedicate more and more land for new housing, even where developers have expressed little or no interest in starting new projects.

Local governments that know the preferences and needs of their residents best are taken to task for failing to report progress toward the state’s housing goals. One recent state report singled out 31 Southern California cities for failing to file such reports. The same study showed that 100 out of 539 cities statewide filed no such reports over the last five years.

At the same time, MTA directors ordered their staff to write a regional analysis of socalled “congestion pricing.” That’s a concept used in a few cities worldwide — London among them — that sees drivers charged either a per-mile use tax or an entry fee for heading into the most congested areas. The study also will try to determine what might happen if forhire ride-share vehicles had to pay fees for using city streets.

The politicians pushing all these measures ought to heed some of California’s political history and see for themselves what happened to Gianturco, who pioneered their mode of thinking. Along with her boss, then-Gov. Brown, she learned painfully that letting unproven theories or ones known to be false determine public policies and actions can prove personally and politically disastrous.

Email Thomas Elias at tdelias@aol.com.

Politicians who think they can so easily get Californians out of their cars should look to history.

DEO FERRER — DAILY DEMOCRAT

Tom Elia

 “The more that you read, the more things you will know. The more that you learn, the more places you’ll go.”

  Theodor Seuss Geisel, better known as Dr. Seuss, captured the essence and importance of reading with this simple quote. Whether it is learning the art of how to read or reading to learn important information, engaging children to read is key. The fundamental skill of reading can be difficult for some children. Finding ways to make the reading experience enjoyable can influence a child’s reading success. 

Have you opened a new location, redesigned your shop, or added a new product or service? Don't keep it to yourself, let folks know.

Customers have questions, you have answers. Display the most frequently asked questions, so everybody benefits.

 Walking and biking to school is proven to have tremendous benefits for communities, schools and families, the program states. Walking or biking promotes physical wellness, improved cognitive abilities and teaches critical social skills. Students who walk or bike to school help reduce traffic congestion and improve air quality. 

AB 127 I AM OPPOSED TO THIS BILL BETTER. AB 839 WITH STUDY FROM 2015 SB 350. OR LAST CHOICE IS SB 152 TO REMOVE CA STATE CAL TRANS ALL TO GATHER.  PLEASE SEE MY TAB DOCUMENTS PART WAY DOWN TO READ SB 350 .  BEALL, Chair

1:30 p.m. - John L. Burton Hearing Room (4203)

Committees: Transportation DATE 4-23-2019 AT 1:30 PM

www.striderbikes.com/events/sponsorship

You've never seen anything like a Strider Cup race, and children will never ... and engage with young families in a one-of-a-kind setting at a toddler bike race! ... Packet Pick-Up Sponsor; Host Hotel Sponsor; Merchandise Sponsors (place your ... 

 Strider Cup Races are family-friendly race and play experiences designed to let little ones ages 2-6 years old explore the world on two wheels. The races offer the structure of an organized and 

competitive race in a fun and inviting atmosphere where family and friends are supportive of all riders. 

 The Strider 12 race classes will be open to children 2-4 years old. The Strider 14x Sport race class will be open to children ages 3-6 years old. If your little tater tot is 3 or 4 years old, they’re more than welcome to race on their Strider 12 Bike, and then race again in the 14-inch class on their Strider 14x bike. A second registration & fee would be required.  Walking and biking to school is proven to have tremendous benefits for communities, schools and families, the program states. Walking or biking promotes physical wellness, improved cognitive abilities and teaches critical social skills. Students who walk or bike to school help reduce traffic congestion and improve air quality. 

Have you opened a new location, redesigned your shop, or added a new product or service? Don't keep it to yourself, let folks know.

Customers have questions, you have answers. Display the most frequently asked questions, so everybody benefits.